The Tata Nano is set to get its first serious upgrade since its launch in March 2009. The face-lifted model will get a host of cosmetic changes including new seats and fabric, new front seat headrests, a beige-coloured dashboard to brighten up the interiors, passenger-side outside rear-view mirror, new wheel-cap design and floor mats, and will be available in attractive new colours.
The Nano gets significant mechanical changes too. The steering geometry has been reworked and the castor-angle optimised to reduce steering effort, a major complaint in the current car. The new car gets tweaked suspension setup and an anti-roll bar to further improve its ride and handling. Tata’s engineers have increased body stiffness too by making changes to the structure with better bonding of the body panels. This will see an improvement in refinement levels.
Tata has also raised the power by nearly 10 percent, from 35bhp to 38bhp. However, there will be no significant performance gain as the step-up in power has been offset by taller gearing in a bid to achieve the magical 25kpl figure that till now has been accomplished only by other Tata cars — the eV2 and eCS.
Also in the works are a two-cylinder diesel engine and a more powerful three-cylinder 900cc petrol motor. However, these engines are at least a year away. Apart from the current car’s sunshine-yellow, the revised Nano will be available in pearl-white and striking colours such as orange and green.
We don’t expect any major price revisions when the car is launched later this month.